Strand positioning apparatus

ABSTRACT

An apparatus for receiving and automatically moving a moving strand of fibers from a starting position to any one of a plurality of predetermined positions in a multi-grooved separator roll is disclosed. This apparatus is particularly in processes of making continuous fiber products from molten material and replaces a manual operation that presented safety problems.

This application is a continuation in part of application Ser. No.08/960,119 filed Oct. 27, 1997, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,935,289 issued Aug.10, 1999, which application was a continuation of application Ser. No.08/604,695 filed Feb. 21, 1996, now abandoned, which was acontinuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 08/296,212 filed Aug. 25,1994, now abandoned. This invention involves apparatus for receiving,moving and positioning a strand, fiber, cable or wire and a method ofusing the apparatus to make products like chopped glass fiber strand.The apparatus is particularly suited to handling and positioning astrand of fibers such as glass fibers.

In the manufacture of chopped fiber strands it is typical to pull aplurality of strands, each containing a large number of fibers, at ahigh rate of speed with a chopping device to attenuate the fibers to thedesired fiber diameter and to chop the strands of fibers into desiredlengths. Such processes are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,815,461,4,194,896 and 4,576,621. Normally, 5-15 strands are pulled by thechopper. To prevent the strands from bunching up and being cut by only asmall length of the blades in the chopper it is known to use a strandseparating guide roll having grooves or ridges and valleys on thesurface for holding one or two strands, for keeping the strandsseparated and for guiding the individual strands into the chopper topresent a spread out, uniform array of fiber strands to the chopperblades. This improves the quality of the chopped strands and increasesthe life of the chopper blades.

In a typical fiber glass operation an operator would stand below and infront of a fiber forming bushing that has broken out and needs to berestarted. If a part of the bushing is still running good fibers, theoperator would break out that portion. As soon as all of the tips havebeaded out and primary fibers are being generated from all of the tips,the operator gathers the array of fibers together into a bundle orstrand, cuts or breaks the strand to form an end and pulls the fiberarray against a sizing applicator and the strand under a pad wheel orguide with a curved surface below the bushing and walks the strand,pulling it, down to a puller, such as a chopper or winder, and feeds itinto the pulling mechanism whereby the strand is pulled at the properspeed and chopped continuously into chopped fiber product or wound intoa continuous strand package for use in making reinforced plastics,non-woven fiber glass mats, etc. In a typical operation each operatormay have responsibility for 10 to 30 or more bushings and each bushingstart may require walking at least 20-40 feet to get the strand to thepuller or chopper, and in some instances, to the winder, and to walkback to the position or the next position needing attention or starting.

With many bushings typically breaking out (at least 20 fibers broken) atleast 0.5-4 times per hour or more, especially when the glass qualityvaries from normal, the operator either doesn't have time to restarteach bushing as soon as necessary for most efficient operation, or theoperator becomes tired and doesn't get the fibers from the bushingsrestarted timely. This resultant loss of efficiency and the desire toreduce the labor costs in this process makes it desirable to reduce thework load of the operator wherever possible.

One operation that takes a lot of the operators time presently is torestart the strands from all of the bushings feeding that chopper afterthat chopper is started back up after a shutdown for rebuilding orrepair. The backup roll, blade roll and other parts are wearable andmust be replaced as often as every shift depending upon the type ofproduct being made. Additionally, the chopper can malfunction due to thefailure of some component and must be repaired. Until the presentinvention, when a chopper shuts down or was shut down, the operatorwould break out each strand below the bushing and allow the bushing to“hang”, i.e. allow the primary fibers to flow continuously into thewaste system in a level below the chopper level. When the chopper hadbeen repaired and restarted it is desirable to get all of the strandsfrom the bushings in the hanging mode running back into the chopper assoon as possible.

When starting a new strand of fiber into the chopper it is not practicalto try to get the strand into the proper groove or valley on the strandseparator roll because of the necessity of keeping the strand moving andbecause of the difficulty of aligning the strand with the proper grooveor valley while on the move with the strand. Instead, the new heavystrand of primary fibers is placed in a wider start up valley or pulleywheel to start the strand. After the strand has started into the chopperthe operator, with his bare fingers or hand, moves the strand out of thestart up valley and over to the a position adjacent the proper valley orgroove on the strand separator roll and releases the strand into theproper valley. While he is doing this the strand is sliding over hisskin at a speed of from 30 to over 60 miles per hour. This results infrequent injury to fingers and hands due to glass splinters, elongatedbeads and broken filaments being imbedded into the palm of the hand orfingers by the moving strand. Wearing gloves or other protective geardoes not avoid these injuries, but makes the operator less efficient andless effective in the strand starting process. In a typical glass fiberchopped strand operation an operator, at times, has to start as many as30 or more new strands per hour and averages starting about 5-15 newstrands per hour.

It has long been desired to eliminate the need for an operator to movethe strand using his hand or fingers to make the job safer, to eliminateannoying and sometimes painful injuries caused by this technique and toimprove the productivity and efficiency of the operation, but nothinghas been available to solve the problem. Something that would eliminatethis task of the operator could also be used to position other strandlike objects like wire, cable, fiber, etc. in other operations.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention comprises a strand positioning apparatus forpositioning a running item such as a strand of fibers, a fiber, wire,string, rope, cable or similar object into a predetermined position suchas in desired groove or valley on a guide comprising a holder,preferably a curved surface, for the running item (strand), atransporter for moving the strand holder to the proper location and amechanism for releasing the strand into the desired valley or groove inthe surface of a strand separator roll, guide, or equivalent. Severalconfigurations of strand holders are suitable so long as the holder isconvenient to place a moving strand into quickly, does not damage orinterfere with a moving strand, and reliably releases the strand whenactivated to do so. The transporter for moving the strand holder can beof various types so long as it moves the holder at a controlled rate andstops the holder at a precise predetermined location upon command. Inone embodiment, the strand holder is a V or U grooved wheel that can bepivoted upward to release the strand against a vertical strand guidewhich guides the strand into the desired valley on the strand separatorroll.

In another embodiment the strand holder is a circular disc having a slotthat communicates with the periphery of the disc. The disc can berotated to align the slot with the new strand and then moved to causethe running new strand to enter the slot. The disc is then rotated tomove the strand either downwardly or upwardly to remove the strand froma starting groove in either the separator roll or some other startingstrand guide. Once the strand is in the slot the disc is moved to theappropriate spot to align a vertical strand guide with a desired valleyon the separator roll and the disc is rotated to move the open end ofthe slot to a position where the running strand will exit the slot,contact the vertical strand guide and slide into the desired valley onthe separator roll.

The mechanism for releasing the strand works in conjunction with thestrand holder and can be of various configurations so long as itfunctions accurately and reliably. The strand positioner apparatus canalso comprise a strand guide that assists in guiding the strand into thedesired groove or valley when released from the strand holder.

The present invention also includes a method of making chopped strand,fiber, wire, string, etc. using the strand positioners described above.The invention eliminates a risky manual task and frees the operator toattend to other process needs. When the term “supporting a new runningstrand” is used herein it is also intended to include “holding” a newrunning strand.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an elevational view of a typical prior art system andoperation for making chopped strand showing a strand separator roll.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of a portion of the system shown in FIG. 1 showingthe strand separator roll having valleys to contain and guide movingstrands into a chopper.

FIG. 3 is a partial plan view of the strand guide roll shown in FIGS. 1,2 and 4.

FIG. 4 is a plan view of the apparatus shown in FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a front view of one embodiment of a strand positioner of thepresent invention.

FIG. 6 is a front view of the apparatus shown in FIG. 3 in a strandreleasing position.

FIGS. 7 and 8 show a strand releasing mechanism in a strand startingposition and a strand releasing position respectively.

FIG. 9 is a side partial view of a preferred embodiment of the inventionin position to receive a new strand being started into a device such asa chopper.

FIG. 10 is a perspective close-up view of a portion of the preferredembodiment in a position to release a strand showing elements in detail.

FIG. 11 is a close-up perspective view of the preferred embodiment in astrand releasing position showing elements in detail.

FIG. 12 is a partial end view of the preferred embodiment in a strandreleasing position.

FIG. 13 is a partial side view of another embodiment showing a differentdevice for receiving a new strand, holding a running strand, andreleasing the running strand.

FIG. 14 is a partial plan view of the embodiment shown in FIG. 13.

FIGS. 15, 16 and 17 are partial side views of the embodiment shown inFIGS. 13 and 14 showing different stages of operation in repositioning astrand.

FIG. 18 is a frontal view of an alternative strand holder that can beused on the embodiment shown in FIGS. 13-17.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention can be used in a variety of processes to make avariety of products as will be readily recognized by the skilled artisanafter reading this disclosure. For purposes of illustrating theinvention and its use, the process of making chopped strand is chosen.

FIG. 1 shows a pertinent portion of a typical prior art system formaking chopped strands, such as chopped strands of glass fibers. Moltenglass is fed from a furnace and forehearth (not shown) into a pluralityof electrically heated fiberizing bushings 2 or fiberizers. Eachfiberizer 2 has a plurality of holes or tips in a plate in the base ofthe fiberizer 2 through which molten glass flows to form primary fibers4 which move slowly downwardly in the direction shown. To convert theprimary fibers 4 to fibers of a much smaller desired diameter it isnecessary to pull the fibers at a high rate of speed to attenuate thefibers near the bottom of the fiberizer 2 where the fibers are stillmolten or stretchable. In the chopped strand system this is done by achopper 10.

Below each fiberizer 2 is a sizing applicator roll 6 for applying aknown chemical sizing to the surface of the fibers in a known mannerwhen they are being pulled. Also below each fiberizer 2 is a turning orpad wheel 8 for turning and guiding a strand 9 of fibers in a generallyhorizontal direction toward the chopper 10. A strand separator guideroll 26 is located between the pad wheel 8 closest to the chopper 10 andthe chopper 10 to keep the strands 9 separated as they enter the chopper10. As seen in FIG. 2, the guide roll 26 has valleys 27, one for eachstrand, between ridges 29 and an outer valley 31 for a new strand 13 torun in during start up of the new strand 13.

The chopper 10 comprises a frame (not shown), a back up roll 12, anoptional pulling roll 14 and a blade roll 20. The optional pulling roll14 cooperates with the back up roll 12 to pull the strands 9 when thewrap of the strands around the back up roll prior to the blade roll 16is insufficient to create enough grip on the strands 9 to pull them intothe nip between the back up roll 12 and the blade roll 20. The surfaceof the back up roll 12 is somewhat soft and cooperates with the bladesin the blade roll 20 to chop the strands into the desired lengths in aknown manner. The chopped strands 17 are collected and transported awayby a conveyor 15.

The chopper 10 also comprises a start up accelerator roll 18, anoptional guide 16, a flipper switch 17 and a chute 19, a finger 24 and afinger cylinder 22 for starting up a new strand 13. Each time a newstrand 13, which can be from any of the fiberizers 2, is started intothe chopper 10 it is necessary to accelerate the new strand 13 up to thepulling speed of the strands 9 that are being chopped before putting thenew strand 13 into the nip between the backup roll 12 and the blade roll20. Once the new strand 13 has been accelerated to the proper pullingspeed by the accelerator roll 18, which is usually triggered by a fixedtime after the flipper switch 17 has been activated, the finger 24 ismoved towards the body of the chopper 10 by retraction of cylinder 22 tomove the new strand 13 into the nip between the backup roll 12 and theblade roll 20 where it is chopped and becomes a running strand 9.

After the finger 24 has pulled the new strand 13 into the nip betweenthe puller 14 and the chopper roll 20, the cylinder 22 extends to returnthe finger 24 to its waiting position beyond a plane that passes throughan outer vertical face of the backup roll 12. Also, the new strand 13,which is now being chopped but continues to run in the start up valley31 on the separator roll 26. The tail of the new strand 13 is fed intothe waste chute 19 by the accelerator roll 18 to go to the waste hopperor system. In the past the new strand 13 is then moved into theappropriate valley 27 by the operator using a finger or the palm of hishand to move the running new strand 13 down out of the valley 31 andover and up into the appropriate valley 27.

The present invention positions the new strand into the proper valley 27of the strand separator roll 26 mechanically and automatically, freeingthe operator to do other things and making the operator's task muchsafer. Referring to FIG. 3, a partial view of a strand separator roll 25is shown. The separator roll 25 is preferably different in design thanthe separator roll 26 shown in FIG. 2 by not having the valley 31 usedfor the start up strand. The roll 25 is fixed and supported on a slowlyrotating shaft 23. The valleys 27 are labeled A through D, for a linecontaining only four bushings. Strands are running in valleys A, C, andD. The step of moving a new strand to its proper position on theseparator roll 25, in this case valley B, is done mechanically andautomatically with a novel strand positioning apparatus.

FIGS. 4-8 show strand positioning apparatus of the present invention,and operation for accepting a starting strand and for moving the strandto the appropriate valley on the strand separator roll 25. FIG. 4 is aplan view of a portion of the forming room between the strand separatorroll 25 and the bushing position nearest the chopper 10. The strands arein the same positions as they are in FIG. 3. A strand positionerassembly 31 is located close to the chopper and separator roll 25,preferably lower than the separator roll, but this is not necessary. Thestrand positioner assembly 31 comprises a generally horizontal arm 82,preferably being a gear toothed rack with the teeth on the underneathside and having on one end a strand holder member 34 curved slightly atits extremity to form an eye 39 for receiving and holding a runningstrand. The member 34 is pivotly coupled at a point along its length toa fixed vertical member 35 and, at its opposite end to a rod 33 of anactuator 86. The actuator 86 can be an electrical solenoid, an aircylinder or other actuating device and is attached to a clevis mount 37which in turn is pivotly attached with a pin to a second vertical member38, rigidly attached to arm 82. Assembly 31 further comprises a gearedstepping motor 42 cooperating with the teeth in arm 82 to move strandholder 34 back and forth in a horizontal direction, a plurality of rackguide rolls 40, optionally one or more vertical positioners 44 (see FIG.5), and a control system with memory (not shown). As shown in FIG. 5,the strands A′, C′, D′, with B′ shown in phantom for where it will beplaced, are spaced apart, on an incline or are at this location, abovethe path of eye 39, as shown in FIG. 4.

The control system can cause the strand holder eye 39 to be movedperpendicular to and beneath the running strands and knows where thestrand holding eye 39 of member 34 is at all times using an X axissensing and control system. The control system also knows where thepositions A′-D′ are on the X axis, and optionally can be designed toalso know where these positions are vertically, or on a Y axis.Optionally, beneath the positioner 31 is one or more verticalpositioners 44 that operate with a Y axis sensor and control system andthe control system has programmed into its memory where the eye 39should be vertically to receive a new a strand 13 (FIG. 1) or S (FIGS.4, 5, and 7, and to later release this strand into the appropriatevalley 27 to become a normal running strand 9.

When the operator goes to a hanging bushing requiring strand restart, hepushes a button located at each bushing position that sends a signal tothe memory of the control system for positioner 31 which indicates thenumber or letter of the bushing and the valley 27 to position the nextstrand in on the separator roll 25, and which also actuates the steppermotor 42 and actuator 36 to place eye 39 into the position shown inFIGS. 4 and 5.

After a new strand has been placed in eye 39 and placed over or onto theaccelerator roll 18, and when a signal is sent to move finger 24 backinto its normal position, a signal is also sent to the positioner 31 tomove eye 39 and the new strand 13 or S to the proper position forreleasing the new strand into valley B, or the proper valley 27 for thestrand as stored in the control system memory. Once eye 39 is in thislocation, the control system stops stepper motor 42 and signals theactivator 86 extending rod 33 which pivots eye 39 to the position shownin FIG. 6, allowing the strand S, or 13, to release from eye 39 andslide up into position B′ and into valley B of the separator roll 25.The strand is shown in phantom positions to show the path it moves in asit slides into position B′ (B prime).

While this automatic strand positioning apparatus has been shown with amanual strand starting operation, this invention can also be used toimprove an automatic or mechanical strand starting system of the typedisclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,935,289. Manually moving the strands intoposition on separator roll 26 is a safety hazard because occasionally ahot bead or sliver gets caught in a strand and can hit an operator'shand at up to sixty miles per hour or faster causing burns and/or asliver to be driven into a finger and even finger bone. Also, if thestrand is dry because of failure of the pot sprays or failure of thesizing applicator to size the fibers, the rapidly moving dry strand isvery abrasive and will burn or cut ones hand or fingers.

Although the vertical positioner 44 is not necessary, it can be used toenhance the performance of the strand positioner apparatus, particularlywhere many bushings and strands are present in each fiberizing line,such as ten or more. The vertical distance between the first and laststrand in the plane of the movement of eye 39 will be much greater whenmany strands are present. It will be readily seen that several otherknown devices can be used to modify this apparatus to reposition a newlystarted strand in the manner disclosed here and it is within theordinary skill of the art to do so. For example, vertical member 38could be eliminated by attaching pivoting member 34 on the end portionof arm 32 using a hinge 45 as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8.

FIGS. 9-12 show a preferred embodiment of the invention which is amodification of the embodiment disclosed in FIGS. 4-8. The modificationis in the strand holder mechanism 83 for holding a new running strandand for later releasing the new strand 13 into the appropriate valley 27of the separator roll 25. A side view of this embodiment is shown inFIG. 9. This strand positioning apparatus differs from that describedabove only with the strand holder and releasing mechanism 83 attached tothe arm 82. In this embodiment, an extension arm 84 is attached to arm82 with a coupling 85 that slips over both the arm 82 and the extensionarm 84 and grips both with the aid of a one or more tightening screws ina known manner. A mount 87 is preferably attached to the other end ofthe extension arm 84 in any known manner, such as with (not shown)threaded into the mount 87.

In this preferred embodiment a number of things are attached to themount 87. First, a strand guide rod 90 having a vertical portion 91,preferably made of brass or stainless steel, is mounted to the block inany known manner. The guide rod 90 is preferably bent such that thevertical portion 91 is located where the new running strand S will bereleased from a U or V shaped grooved wheel 92 when the axis of thewheel 92 is tipped up to an angle of 45 degrees or more (see FIG. 10).The wheel 92 is preferably made of graphite or brass filled graphite orMicarta. The wheel 92 can rotate freely on an axle 93 and is held ontothe axle 93 with a washer and nut 94. In the strand starting position,the axis of the wheel 92 is in a generally horizontal position as shownin FIG. 9.

The axle 93 of the wheel 92 is held and manipulated by a pivotingmechanism 95 driven by a fluid, preferably air, cylinder 96 having acylinder rod 101. The pivoting mechanism 95 is attached to the mount 87in any known manner, such as is shown in FIG. 12. In addition to thedriver cylinder 96, the pivoting mechanism comprises an optionalmounting arm 97, an outer bracket 98, an inner bracket 99, a clevis 100,one or two links 102 and various pins to be specified later to attachthese parts together in a pivoting manner. Instead of the pivotingmechanism 95 shown, any mechanism that will pivot or tip the wheel 92 inthe manner shown can be used in the present invention.

In the preferred embodiment shown, wheel axle 93 is attached to theoptional mounting arm 97 in any known manner, such as with bolts asshown. The other end of the mounting arm 97 is attached to the topportion of the inner bracket 99 with a pin 104, see FIG. 11, such thatthe mounting arm 97 can pivot around the pin 104. Also attached to themounting arm 97, close to the pin 104 and between the pin 104 and thewheel 92, is one end of the clevis 100 in a pivoting manner with a pin105 (see FIG. 10). The mounting arm 97 is optional because wheel axle 93can be made to attach directly to the top portion of the inner bracket99 if desired and in that case the items attached to the mounting arm 97would be attached to the axle 93 instead.

The outer bracket 98 sets on top of the mount 87 and the inner bracket99 sets on top of a base of the outer bracket 98 and is within twobracket arms 103 of the outer bracket 98. The bracket arms 103 arespaced apart such that preferably the remainder of the pivotingmechanism 95 is between the planes made by inner surfaces of the bracketarms 103. The fluid cylinder 96 is mounted within an upper portion ofthe bracket arms 103 in a pivoting manner with pins 108, each of whichpasses through a hole in the upper portion of one bracket arm 103 andinto a casing or mount on the front end of the cylinder 96.

The inner bracket 99 also has two arms 109 which are shorter than thebracket arms 103 of the outer bracket. The two inner bracket arms 109are spaced apart enough to allow the mounting arm 97 to pivot withintheir inner surfaces. The top of the inner bracket arms end below thebottom of the cylinder rod 101.

The other end of the clevis 100 is attached to the end of the cylinderrod 101 in a pivoting manner with a pin 106. Preferably the two links102 are attached to the lower portion of the inner bracket 99, one link102 on each side of the mounting arm 97, with a pin 107 in a pivotingmanner and the other end of the links 102 are attached in a pivotingmanner to the pin 106 that passes through a hole near the end of thecylinder rod 101. The two links 102 can optionally be replaced with aone piece bracket or clevis which would allow the links 102 to be madein a single piece of material in a known manner.

When using the preferred embodiment of FIGS. 9-12, the operator goes tothe bushing he will be starting a strand from and he pushes the buttonthere that sends a signal to the memory of the control system forpositioner 31 which indicates the number or letter of the bushing andthe valley 27 to position the next strand in on the separator roll 25.This signal also actuates the stepper motor 42 and actuator 86 to placewheel 92 into the position shown in FIG. 9.

After a new strand has been placed in the U or V shaped groove in wheel92, it is then threaded into the strand processing device like thechopper 10 and placed over or onto the accelerator roll 18. After thefinger 24 has moved the new strand into the nip between the blade roll20 and the back up roll 12, a signal is sent to the positioner 31 tomove the wheel 92, the vertical portion of the guide rod 91 and the newstrand 13 to the proper position for releasing the new strand S into thedesired valley 27 for the strand S, as stored in the control systemmemory. Once wheel 92 is in this location, the control system stopsstepper motor 42 and opens a conventional fluid valve (not shown) whichallows compressed air to enter the rod end of the cylinder 96withdrawing the cylinder rod 101 which, with the pivoting mechanism 95,pivots the wheel 92 to the position shown in FIG. 10, allowing thestrand S to slide up the U or V groove of the wheel 92 and against thesurface of the vertical strand guide 91 and into the desired groove 27of the separator roll 27. The pulling of the new strand S by the chopper10 causes the new strand S to move in this direction to the desiredvalley 27 in the separator roll 25 and the presence and location of thevertical portion 91 of the strand guide rod 90 guides the new strand Sinto the proper valley.

In another modification a strand separator roll similar to the roll 26shown in FIG. 2, but preferably modified as shown in FIGS. 13 and 14 byhaving an enlarged diameter valley 115 for starting the new strand in isused for starting the strand instead of the eye 39 or the wheel 92. Inthis case the control system for the positioning apparatus 31 would userotation of a disc 116, or an arm or portion of a disc 117 (see FIG.18), having a generally circular slot or cutout 118 in the periphery ofthe disc to receive and hold the new running strand S, and preferably toremove the new strand S from the valley 115, before moving the strand Sto its proper location for release. A strand contacting surface 120 ofthe slot 118 is preferably convex in shape to produce a curved surfaceto contact the new running strand to reduce the area of contact and tominimize frictional drag on the strand. The disc 116, or the portion ofa disc or arm 117, is mounted in a rotational manner, preferably on anaxle 122 connected to a stepper motor 124 mounted near the end of thearm 82. The strand guide rod 90 having a vertical portion 91 is alsomounted to the arm 82 as the earlier described embodiment.

When the new strand S has been moved into the chopper 10 and is beingchopped, a signal is sent to the positioner 31 to move the disc 116 tothe position shown in FIG. 15 such that the new running strand S movesinto the slot 118. After reaching that point, a signal is sent to thestepper motor 124 to rotate the disc 116 counter clockwise to move thenew running strand S downward out of the valley 115 and to the positionshown in FIG. 16. At that time a signal is sent to the positioner 31 tomove the disc 116 and the strand guide rod 90 to a point where theleading edge of the vertical portion 91 of the guide rod 90 lines upwith an outboard edge of the desired valley 27 in the separator roll 25as shown in FIG. 17. Finally, a signal is sent to the stepper motor 24to rotate the disc 116 clockwise, or counter clockwise, to allow the newrunning strand S to slide up and out of the slot 118 and up the leadingedge or surface of the vertical portion 91 of the strand guide rod 90and into the desired valley 27 on the separator roll. At this time thedisc is returned to the location and orientation shown in FIGS. 13 and14 by the positioner 31 and the stepper motor 24.

Instead of using a disc 116 in this embodiment, only a portion of a disc118 as shown in FIG. 18 or a strand holder of this same or similar shapecan also be used. Also, instead of using a larger diameter valley 115 onthe end of the separator roll 25 to hold the new running strand S untilit is relocated to the desired valley on the separator roll by thepresent invention, it is possible for the operator to put the new strandhe is starting directly into the slot 118 on the disc 116 or the arm ordisc portion 117.

For all of the embodiments of the invention it is within the ordinaryskill of the control systems designer having the benefit of thisdisclosure to design a control system to operate in the manner describedabove without using any inventive skill. Having the benefit of the abovedisclosure, it will be apparent to the skilled artisan that otherobvious modifications can be made to the apparatus disclosed here and tothe method of using the apparatus to make glass fiber products withoutchanging the concept of the invention and those modifications areintended to be included within the scope of the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A running item positioning apparatus forsupporting and moving the item running linearly at a speed of at least30 miles per hour selected from a group consisting of fiber, string,strand of fibers, and wire from a first position on the apparatus to asecond position which is one predetermined valley which can be any oneof four or more different valleys in a guide or item separator that isspaced from a holder on the apparatus, said valleys having a function ofguiding a plurality of running items, comprising the holder having acurved surface for receiving and holding the running item in the firstposition, a transporter comprising a drive for moving the holderhorizontally, an arm for supporting the holder and a control system forcausing the drive to move said arm to move said curved surface and therunning item to or near said predetermined valley on said guide or itemseparator, said predetermined valley being any one of said four or morevalleys and predetermined by a signal to said control system prior tosaid moving, and a mechanism for releasing said running item from saidholder and into or near said predetermined valley whereby said runningitem moves into said predetermined valley.
 2. A running item positioningapparatus for supporting, moving and releasing an item running linearlyat a speed of at least 30 miles per hour selected from a groupconsisting of a fiber, strand of fibers, string and wire from oneposition on the apparatus to a predetermined valley selected from anyone of four or more valleys on a guide or item separator that is spacedfrom a holder on the apparatus and having a function of guiding aplurality of four or more running items, said apparatus comprising: a)the holder having a curved surface for receiving and holding saidrunning item, b) a transporter for supporting and moving said holder andsaid running item to near said predetermined valley, said transportercomprising an arm for supporting said holder and a drive for moving saidholder horizontally towards and away from said predetermined position,c) a control system comprising means for receiving a signal indicatingwhich one of the four or more valleys is selected as the predeterminedvalley and for causing said drive to move the holder near thepredetermined valley, and d) a mechanism for releasing said running itemfrom said holder allowing said running item to move into saidpredetermined valley on said guide or item separator.
 3. The apparatusof claim 2 wherein said holder is located on one end of a pivot arm thatis mounted on said arm.
 4. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein saidtransporter for moving said running item also comprises an actuator forpivoting said pivot arm to properly align and release said strand intosaid predetermined valley and to return said curved surface of saidholder to a receiving position.
 5. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein saidcontrol system comprises memory for storing information about the signaland later uses this information to control movement of said holder. 6.The apparatus of claim 2 wherein said holder for receiving and holdingsaid running item is a wheel having a curved surface in the form of a Uor V shaped valley in its periphery.
 7. The apparatus of claim 6 whereinsaid transporter for moving said holder comprises members for holdingsaid wheel in a position and location for receiving the running item andfor pivoting said wheel to properly align and release said running iteminto said predetermined valley.
 8. The apparatus of claim 7 furthercomprising: e) a guide rod having a vertical portion for contacting andguiding said running item into said predetermined valley.
 9. Theapparatus of claim 2 further comprising: e) a guide rod having avertical portion for contacting and guiding said running item into saidpredetermined valley.
 10. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein said controlsystem comprises means for storing information about said signal andlater using this information to control the movement of said holder bysaid drive.
 11. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein the curved surface forsupporting the running item is a part of a slot in a disc, portion of adisc or the arm.
 12. The apparatus of claim 11 further comprising aguide rod having a vertical portion for contacting and guiding saidstrand into said predetermined valley.